The 8 Best Bread Makers You Can Buy Online

Best Overall: Zojirushi Virtuoso Plus Bread Maker

Standout Features: This model has a large LED screen that's easy to read, and it uses two heaters for an even bake.

For perfect loaves inside and out, recruit the Zojirushi Virtuoso Plus Bread Maker. Its double-kneading blades and dual heater technology thoroughly work and bake dough, ensuring that it's evenly browned, uniformly shaped, and raised to perfection. The two-pound capacity model allows for customization with its advanced settings, which cater to a variety of bread recipes, like multigrain, whole wheat, salt-free, gluten-free, and vegan loaves. There's even an option to select the crust color, giving users the option to choose light, medium, or dark. If you're in a hurry, use the rapid setting to have your loaf baked and ready to serve in just two hours and 25 minutes. This bread machine has an average customer rating of 4.7 stars from Amazon shoppers who praised the model's quality construction, versatility, and ease of use in their reviews.

Best Budget: Hamilton Beach Bread Maker

Standout Features: This affordable bread maker has delay start and automatic one-hour warming features for overnight bakes, and it can make dough for pizza, dinner rolls, and more.

Amazon's best-selling bread maker, this Hamilton Beach model wins over bakers with its streamlined operating system, various settings, and affordable price point. The budget-friendly model yields fresh loaves in three easy steps with its pre-programmed cycles, which reviewers say take the guesswork out of at-home bread baking—even when tackling gluten-free, yeast-free, French, sweet, and whole grain bread recipes. Despite its two-pound capacity, the machine can still bake one-and-a-half-pound loaves, and busy bread enthusiasts can use the delay start feature to bake bread overnight. This also comes in handy for preparing dough for pizza, dinner rolls, and other favorites.

Best for Beginners: Cuisinart Compact Bread Maker

Standout Features: This vertical bread machine guides you through recipes and has a lid window, so you can watch your loaves until they're perfectly golden.

Ideal for small kitchens and crowded countertops, this space-saving bread maker from Cuisinart has a vertical baking pan that's responsible for its sleek design. It has 12 pre-programmed cycles that cater to a variety of bread-baking skill sets, including options for artisan loaves and packaged mixes. Beginners will particularly enjoy the bread machine's alert system, which beeps to signal when it's time to remove the paddle, add mix-ins, and rack the bread. The compact bread maker has a 13-hour delay start feature, and it comes with a convenient lid window and an interior light, so you can track the progress of the dough as it's baking.

"This is the perfect machine to learn on," an Amazon shopper wrote. They also added, "The booklet tells you what supplies you need and how you will use [them] in a recipe. Just follow the directions and you will have a loaf of bread. It's been fun."

Best for Fast Bakes: Oster Expressbake Breadmaker

Standout Features: This quick-baking option yields bakery-level loaves in less than an hour, courtesy of its "Expressbake" setting.

It features an aluminum pan that ensures even heating and easy cleanup. Thanks to the "Expressbake" setting, you can enjoy freshly baked bread in less than one hour. It has a lengthy 13-hour timer for overnight bakes and 12 bread modes, which you can customize to best suit your loaf size and crust color preferences. It's also equipped with beginner-friendly details like a lid window and advanced signaling system, which even tells you when to add toppings to your dough.

"I thought there was no way this thing is going to make bread in under an hour. I got proved wrong," one Amazon customer said.

Most Versatile: Breville Custom Loaf Bread Maker

Standout Features: You can customize this machine's many bread settings using its programmable recipe book.

The Breville Custom Loaf Bread Maker has a two-and-a-half-pound dough capacity and offers 13 automatic and manual loaf settings to suit a variety of recipes. There are options for gluten-free loaves and quick bread, as well as three crust color choices and jam functions. It's also great for making pizza and pasta dough. To ensure perfection, the bread machine uses collapsible paddles to prevent indents in the loaf. Its pause function also comes in handy when you want to add glazes or hand-shape the crust. The model even has a dispenser for add-ins, like fruits and nuts, and it can store your favorite recipes.

Best Large Capacity: West Bend Hi-Rise Bread Maker

Standout Features: This oversized model can accommodate up to three pounds of dough.

The West Bend Hi-Rise Bread Maker's spacious horizontal pan allows it to support loaves up to three pounds, and you can use its 12 settings to bake basic, French, whole wheat, gluten-free, sweet, and sandwich breads. There is even an option for boxed bread recipes, plus a setting for kneading pizza dough. The machine has two blades to create its signature high-rise loaves, which are thoroughly kneaded and have a light texture. What makes this model unique is how customizable it is; users can alternate between the pre-programmed settings based on their baking preferences. It's an excellent choice for experienced bakers.

"What I love most about this machine is that it can be simple or it can support more advanced breadmaking," shared an Amazon reviewer. "There are recipes for additional bread types and the machine can handle multiple types and styles of bread."

Best for Gluten-Free Bread: KBS Large Bread Machine

Standout Features: This bread machine's 15-hour timer and 360-degree heating technology make even the most complex of recipes, including those for gluten-free bread, more approachable.

This model has 17 pre-programmed loaf settings, including one catered to gluten-free bread recipes. It offers 360-degree baking, which combined with its ceramic pan, evenly heats dough and delivers a thin crust with a fluffy interior. It has a 15-hour timer for overnight bakes and a one-hour keep warm setting, so you can enjoy fresh-tasting bread anytime. Take it from this Amazon reviewer's testimonial: "Love this breadmaker. I make my own gluten-free bread every week and will never go back to horrible store-bought bread; you really see how bad it is after you make your own."

Best for Sourdough Bread: Cuisinart CBK-200 Convection Bread Maker

Standout Features: An advanced convection heater delivers a chewier texture and crunchier crust, while multiple rise cycles guarantee adequate time for proofing.

Ideal for sourdough bread bakes, this Cuisinart convection model's multiple rise cycles accommodate the slow-proofing required to achieve that ideal crackly-on-the-outside and chewy-on-the-inside combination. The machine's convection feature, which circulates air to enhance the overall appearance and texture of the crust and interior, also helps get this result. But sourdough isn't all that it's good for: There are settings for white, whole wheat, gluten-free, and low-carb bread. If you're in a hurry, there are presets for rapid white, whole wheat, French, and sweet breads. The machine also alerts you when it's time to remove the paddles and add extras.

"Great for sourdough," an Amazon customer wrote. "Just follow the directions and voilà, perfect homemade bread. The machine does all of the work for you."